Here’s an unsettling photo showing the aftermath of a strike on Wednesday:

REUTERS/Saad AbobrahimA man gestures as he calls for help at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike from forces loyal to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad in Tareek Al-Bab area of Aleppo, December 18, 2013.

Rebels believe that the super intense air campaign, which is causing many civilians to flee to the countryside, could be the setup to a government ground offensive against theopposition-held halfof the city.

Assad has waged an air campaign against rebel-held towns since July 2012. The jet and helicopter attacks — which have also included incendiary bombs — have targeted bakeries, markets, hospitals, and schools in an attempt to disrupt civilian life under rebel rule.

The intended effect is to “let the population taste a nightmare version of freedom which would conceivably lead many people to choose Assad’s rule as the lesser evil,” Victor Kotsev of the Asia Times explained in January.

Here’s a strike on the town of Yabroud, a rebel stronghold located about 49 miles north of the capital Damascus (impact at 0:45):

And here’s another photo from Aleppo on December 9:

REUTERS/Ammar AbdullahA man carries a wounded girl who survived what activists say was an air strike by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo’s al-Ansari al-Sharqi neighbourhood, December 9, 2013.